With the path opened by the explosive arrays and their entire battalion fully focused on offense, the remaining Godly Creatures blocking the route were quickly overwhelmed.
The cultivators no longer worried about preserving formations or minimizing energy consumption.
At that moment, the only thing that mattered was speed.
The few Godly Beasts that tried to intercept them were immediately crushed beneath the concentrated assault of hundreds of desperate cultivators charging together.
Finally, Roan’s battalion reached the opening and crossed through it just before the surrounding Godly Creatures flooded in and sealed the gap once more.
Naturally, Roan was not foolish enough to simply stop after reaching safety.
"Position the battalion around the opening," he ordered immediately. "We will help defend this section."
The surviving cultivators quickly spread out around the gap they had just crossed, reinforcing the nearby defenders and preventing the Godly Creatures from instantly overwhelming the position.
*Flap... flap...*
Kentucky descended from the skies nearby, his feathers stained with blood, while exhaustion clearly showed in his eyes.
The remaining flying cultivators also began landing one after another.
At this point, the aerial battlefield was no longer their responsibility. The third defensive line’s own forces would have to handle the skies themselves.
Kentucky let out a long breath.
’That was way too close.’
’It’s not over yet,’ Roan replied through the soul connection.
His eyes moved toward the distant battlefield where endless waves of Godly Creatures continued advancing. No doubt their momentum had slowed down considerably, but it hasn’t stopped yet.
’My original calculations predicted that the first major waves would be stopped somewhere between the third and fourth defensive lines. However, the Raven changed everything. If there was still a chance for the third line to stabilize before, that possibility is almost gone now.’
The Three-Eyed Raven had disrupted the battlefield too severely.
As long as it remained active, no large-scale defensive formation could function properly.
"Pass the order," Roan told Wurshan. "Same as before. Give all the newcomers ten seconds to decide whether they want to stay with us or transfer elsewhere."
Wurshan nodded.
However, just as he prepared to transmit the command through the RCs, a message from Fushio suddenly reached him first.
-Wurshan, we’re being recalled.-
Wurshan blinked in surprise.
It was easy to forget at times, but officially speaking, Fushio was still the original battalion commander. Naturally, the higher command would contact him directly regarding major battlefield orders.
Wurshan immediately turned toward Roan, who pondered briefly before responding. "We can’t disobey this order," he said calmly. "Our previous retreats were another matter entirely. There simply wasn’t any alternative, so nobody can blame us for that. But refusing a direct recall now would create unnecessary problems."
Then he added. "We should be fine if we go."
Wurshan nodded in agreement. "Understood."
Soon afterward, the order spread through the battalion. Under Fushio’s command, their forces detached themselves from the third defensive line and began withdrawing toward the rear.
Compared to the previous defensive lines, the third line possessed much stronger cultivators overall. Even with the Raven interfering, it would almost certainly last far longer than the first two lines.
*Pin!*
Suddenly, a familiar system notification echoed through the minds of the twins’ group.
[Congratulations, hosts. You have successfully protected at least 50% of your battalion.]
[The ripples created by your survival have greatly shifted the destiny of this battlefield.]
[Reward: 20 Orb Points.]
[Reward Two: New skills have been added to the system.]
The twins’ group became momentarily confused. The quest clearly stated that they needed to preserve at least half of their battalion until the momentum of the first Godly Creature waves was stopped. Yet those waves were obviously still ongoing.
However, the reason soon became apparent. From this point onward, the twins’ group would no longer be responsible for that battalion. The quest had essentially concluded the moment command authority shifted away from them.
Still, even with all their efforts, the result had been dangerously close. Because of the Raven’s interference and the chaotic retreats, the number of surviving original battalion members had dropped to only four hundred and thirty-one. And only the original battalion members counted toward the quest completion.
The cultivators who joined them later during the retreats were irrelevant for the calculation. In other words... They had nearly failed.
’Twenty-six Orb Points now...’ Rean commented through their connection. ’Little by little, we’re accumulating more.’
’We have time,’ Roan replied calmly. ’Let’s focus on understanding why we were recalled from the front lines first.’
Meanwhile, Kentucky’s attention had already shifted elsewhere. ’What’s the new skills?’
At this point, all four of them possessed access to the system’s Reward List, although only the twins themselves held authority to actually purchase or activate anything.
The first thing they noticed was that the Yin Yang Sanctuary now possessed a Level Two option.
However, that was not the new reward.
That part of the system had always functioned that way. Whenever a skill with level progression was unlocked, the next level automatically appeared in the list after buying the previous one. The twins simply had not checked the list earlier.
The true surprise appeared directly below it. And there were actually two new options instead of one.
[Yin Yang Sanctuary - Cooldown Removal - 20 Orb Points per use.]
[Yin Yang Sanctuary - Level Two Time Upgrade - 50 Orb Points.]